Cessationism - Episode 15 - Is revival excluded because of apostasy?

Our next Episode in the cessationism series.

Additional Episodes:

• Episode 1, the Perfect.
• Episode 2, the apostles.
• Episode 3, prophecy.
• Episode 4, the closed canon.
• Episode 5, extra biblical reasons.
• Episode 6, only the apostles had all truth.
• Episode 7, there were only limited periods of miracles.
• Episode 8, tongues.
• Episode 9, the work of the Holy Spirit.
• Episode 10, does God speak only through the Scriptures?
• Episode 11, what about impressions?
• Episode 12, what is discernment? 
• Episode 13, the sufficiency of Scripture.
• Episode 14, Was the purpose of miracles restricted to the authentication of the apostles?
• Episode 15, Is revival excluded because of apostasy?
• Episode 16, is prophecy subjective?
• Episode 17, Could only the apostles confer miraculous powers or gifts?
• Episode 18, are charismatics functional cessationists?

Our criteria for the cessationism debate is that the argument must

1. be from the Bible
2. not appeal to contemporary expressions of charismata
3. not appeal to silence
4. not appeal to events or practices of history

That is, any defense of cessationism must be Sola Scriptura.
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Introduction

A cessationist is a Christian who believes that the "supernatural" gifts of the Spirit, including prophecy, tongues, words of knowledge, as well as signs and wonders, did not continue after the death of the last apostle. This is contrasted with a charismatic, or perhaps, a continuationist, who is a Christian who believes the Bible's descriptions of the "supernatural" gifts of the Spirit apply to today's church and should be embraced.

Cessationists also believe that the supernatural existed largely or solely to validate the apostle's ministries, so that their teaching, eventually contained in the NT, would be attested to. With the completed canon of the Bible, there would be no longer a need for these supernatural validations, and thus these things ceased. The reason, they say, is that since signs and wonders had the sole purpose of validating the ministries of the apostles, they are no longer needed because the apostles are gone and we have the completed Bible.

From this they conclude that the Bible is the complete and final revelation of God, and thus He speaks only through the Scriptures today.

Part of the reason they make this claim is if they can restrict the supernatural only to the apostles' ministry, they can invalidate the idea that the supernatural persists to present day.

This series will examine these and other claims.

Apostasy and Revival  - Not mutually exclusive

While not necessarily a claim related to cessationism doctrine, the idea that end-times apostasy excludes the possibility of revival is largely found in the cessationist camp. That is, the cessationist typically believes that the world will grow darker and darker, and the church will dwindle away to just a remnant of faithful believers right before the rapture.

We would suggest, however, that what happens in the some parts of the Church does not speak to what happens to other parts of the church, or even those who are not yet in the Church.

We have written previously about the idea of the world growing darker and darker and found it lacking. We have also written about the rapture, pre-millennialism, and dispensationalism.

Let's define terms. We would use revival, renewal, awakening, and a "move of God" interchangeably. That is, whenever God would move on a scale larger than perhaps a few people, manifesting as multiple salvations, healings, rededications, or restorations, etc.; these all would be evidence of revival. Revival, i.e., a move of God, might overtake a church, a city, a region, or even an entire country (or more). 

Premises

Our initial premises are

1. The Bible does not teach the concept that there can be no revival.
2. This is not a binary equation, where we have to choose one or the other. End-times apostasy does not speak to, let alone exclude revival.
3. We have already had many modern-ish revivals, including

• The Great Awakening, 1734-43. Jonathan Edwards
• The Second Great Awakening, 1800-1840, James McGready, Charles Finney
• The Businessmen’s Revival of 1857-1858, Jeremiah Lanphier
• The Civil War Revival, 1861-1865
• The Urban Revivals, 1875-1885, Dwight L. Moody
• Welsh Revival of 1904-1905, Billy Sunday

We have been in the Last Days since Pentecost. How could there be these revivals during those times of the Last Days but there be no revival in the Last Days during our time?

4) Suppose there were those who thought apostasy excludes revival in the days of Jonathan Edwards, George Whitefield, or John Wesley. What language would be used to refute those revivals, for according to them, those revivals could not happen? We would suspect that the revival-doubters of 150 years ago would employ the same reasoning as present day revival-doubters. Yet there were revivals.

The validity of our thesis seems rather obvious to us: Revival can come in the midst of apostasy. We assent to a coming apostasy, and we assent to a coming revival. Some churches or Christians will apostatize, and some churches or Christians will have revival. And the world will experience revival.

In an odd way, cessationists seem to like the idea of apostasy. One writer puts it this way:

Revival is a concept that is simply unsupported biblically for the end times. The bible instead promises a great end times apostasy, which we see alive and well underway.

Here's another: 

The Scriptures are not promoting a great world wide revival with power but the very opposite for the future overall state of the Church. This does not mean all will succumb to it. However there will be few who have held onto the original faith that the Church once held. Certainly there will be pockets of revival but there is no other way to understand a great falling away unless we see clearly the times we are in. 

So there will be no world-wide revival, but there will be "pockets of revival." It's almost an excuse for failing to be the Church God has called us to be. The idea of a small handful of believers left at the end also tends to facilitate a cult-like "us few standing firm in the faith" mentality. We find this to be extremely distasteful. 

The Apostasy Scriptures

There are a handful of verses that seem to suggest apostasy to the point that only a few are saved.

1) Mt. 7:13-14

"Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

Let's look a little deeper. The literal reading of verse 14 is For small [is] the gate and compressed the way leading to life and few are those finding it.

We always must consider the context and the audience. Our first observation is the present tense of this. Jesus was speaking of what is happening right at that moment. Literally, of those who were listening to him, not many were finding the way of life He was telling them about. 

John references this reality:

Jn. 1:10-11 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.

"His own" are the Jews. They did not recognize Him or receive Him. Paul explained:

 Ro. 9:6 It is not as though God’s word had failed. For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel.

At the time Jesus was speaking there were not many who were entering in the narrow door, the door that is a "new and living way" (He. 10:20). So our second observation is that Jesus was speaking to specifically to Israel. That's the obvious context. He was speaking to His listeners, and His listeners were Jewish. 

So how would they understand it? They would recognize that He was speaking to their current situation. Thus He essentially was saying, "Here I am, the way, the truth, the life, and not many of you are taking me up on what I offer."

2) Lk. 13:23-30

In this passage Jesus is directly asked about salvation:

Someone asked him, “Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?” He said to them, 24 “Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. 25 Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, `Sir, open the door for us.’ “But he will answer, `I don’t know you or where you come from.’

26 “Then you will say, `We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’ 27 “But he will reply, `I don’t know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!’ 28 “There will be weeping there, and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves thrown out. 29 People will come from east and west and north and south, and will take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God.

30 Indeed there are those who are last who will be first, and first who will be last.”

We can say with certainty that this someone who questioned Him was not asking about gentiles. Jews considered the salvation of God to be for Israel only. So the question is a Jewish question. "Jesus, you have been preaching a new way, and we don't understand. Please explain. Are only a few of us going to be saved?" 

The questioner was probably catching on to the idea that this gospel Jesus was preaching meant that not every Jew was going to be saved. This would be a startling revelation to the typical Jew, who would consider himself to be part of the chosen nation as a son of Abraham.

Jesus answered him, that the door is narrow, and many will try and fail to enter. Who are these that fail to enter? We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets. He was talking to and about Jews. They are friends, neighbors, and even associates, yet Jesus never knew them. 

Jesus' fellow Jews will be told that He did not know them.

And crucially, He goes on to explain that from every corner of the earth the "last" (that is, the gentiles) will take their places at the feast, and Israel (the "first") will be the last.

Jesu tells us something that must have surprised His hearers: The most righteous-seeming Jews they knew of would not enter the Kingdom. 

Mt. 5:20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.

So this was a teaching aimed at the Jews, who would largely reject Him and have their house left to them desolate (Mt. 23:38).

3) Lk. 18:7

And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8 I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”

Jesus asks a rhetorical question. Will there be faithful ones when He returns on the Last Day? Our simple response in faith must be, "Yes, Lord. There will be faith on the earth when You return, for we will be good and faithful servants!" We cannot simply acquiesce as if this is fait accompli.

4) Mt. 24:3-31

Now we turn to Jesus' statements about the end. The disciples question Him about when the end time will happen.

As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” 

4 Jesus answered: “Watch out that no-one deceives you. 5 For many will come in my name, claiming, `I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. 6 You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of birth-pains. 

9 “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. 10 At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11 and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13 but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. 

15 “So when you see standing in the holy place `the abomination that causes desolation’, [Daniel 9:27; 11:31; 12:11] spoken of through the prophet Daniel — let the reader understand — 16 then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 17 Let no-one on the roof of his house go down to take anything out of the house. 18 Let no-one in the field go back to get his cloak. 19 How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! 20 Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath. 21 For then there will be great distress, unequalled from the beginning of the world until now — and never to be equalled again. 22 If those days had not been cut short, no-one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened. 

23 At that time if anyone says to you, `Look, here is the Christ!’ or, `There he is!’ do not believe it. 24 For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect — if that were possible. 25 See, I have told you ahead of time. 26 “So if anyone tells you, `There he is, out in the desert,’ do not go out; or, `Here he is, in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it.  

27 For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 28 Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather. 29 “Immediately after the distress of those days “`the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’ [Isaiah 13:10; 34:4] 30 “At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory. 31 And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.

Jesus described a time of great trouble at the end. Darkness will increase in the Church, and false prophets will arise. Then Jesus says that the judgments poured out on the earth will be cut short, for the faithful ones living during this time would otherwise completely perish. Then He will appear in great glory, and every nation will see an mourn. 

And then all the elect will be gathered from every corner of the earth. This gathering from the four winds implies a great event, perhaps the very last of a series of revivals sprinkled throughout the Last Days.

This is the Day of the Lord, the last day of the last days, the final events of this present world system. The turmoil and trouble will be the last events before His coming. 

2Th. 2:1 Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him, we ask you, brothers, 2 not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by some prophecy, report or letter supposed to have come from us, saying that the day of the Lord has already come. 3 Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction.

Here Paul addressed the very same thing Jesus was talking about above. The "gathering" is the very last event of the Day of the Lord. He told the Thessalonian church to not worry, that this Day will not come until certain things happen. The Thessalonians clearly had in mind the end of everything, and Paul reassured them that this has not yet happened.

5) 1 Timothy 4:1-3

But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons, by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron, men who forbid marriage and advocate abstaining from foods which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth.

So the apostasy of the end times is clearly taught in Scripture, but nevertheless we look in vain to find any statement that revival could not come in such times. 

In this darkness a light shines forth, that is the Savior:

Mt. 4:15-16 “Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the way to the sea, along the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles — 16 the people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.”

Jn. 1:5 The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it. 

The advent of Jesus on the earth is the light showing the way of salvation. Those who are in darkness, including gentiles, will see.

Lk. 2:30-32 "For my eyes have seen your salvation, 31 which you have prepared in the sight of all people, 32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.” 

Ac. 13:46-48 Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: “We had to speak the word of God to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles. 47 For this is what the Lord has commanded us: “`I have made you [The Greek is singular.] a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’“ [Isaiah 49:6] 48 When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and honored the word of the Lord; and all who were appointed for eternal life believed. 

Ep. 5:8 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.

The Case for Revival

We now turn to the Scriptural evidence of end-times revival. This means for us a move of God in these days where many will be saved, delivered, healed, and set free. We base this in part on Joel's prophecy:

Joe. 2:28-3:1 “And afterwards, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. 29 Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days.

30 I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and billows of smoke. 31 The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD. 32 And everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved; for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be deliverance, as the LORD has said, among the survivors whom the LORD calls. 3:1 “In those days and at that time, when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem...

Peter added a preface to the passage:

Ac. 2:17 In the last days...

We live in the Last Days, which is the time period subsequent to Pentecost, which ends on the Day of the Lord, the final day. The pouring out of the Holy Spirit commenced the Last Days. Ever since then it has been the Last Days. Because the Holy Spirit is a universal pouring out on all people, we would expect that all the nations would experience revival. Joel tells us that everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved. We anticipate a great harvest among the nations in these last days.

We also note that heaven will be filled with saved souls. 

Rev. 7:9-10: After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no-one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: "Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb."  

There's going to be a great multitude in heaven. Salvation is not going to be rare, and thus we are not only justified in praying for revival, we ought to be passionate for the kingdom of God coming "on earth as is in heaven."

The potential for revival and harvest is immense:

Jn. 4:35 Do you not say, `Four months more and then the harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.

Conclusion

Our last passage to consider is the verses Jesus stood up and quoted, telling His hearers, Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing. (Lk. 4:21):

Is. 61:1-7 The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, 2 to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, 3 and provide for those who grieve in Zion — to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.

They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor. 4 They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations. 5 Aliens will shepherd your flocks; foreigners will work your fields and vineyards. 

6 And you will be called priests of the LORD, you will be named ministers of our God. You will feed on the wealth of nations, and in their riches you will boast. 7 Instead of their shame my people will receive a double portion, and instead of disgrace they will rejoice in their inheritance; and so they will inherit a double portion in their land, and everlasting joy will be theirs.

This is revival language, dear reader. Jesus applies Isaiah's words, the various tasks, to Himself. His ministry is to the lost, the hurting, and the grievers. Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing. Jesus' incarnation inaugurated the day of power manifestations of God, eventually leading to His death and resurrection, culminating in Pentecost. 

Then Isaiah turns to the people, and describes them. They will be rebuilders, renewers, and priests of the Lord. They will receive a double portion, a great inheritance, which will result in everlasting joy. 

The indwelling Holy Spirit is the power expression of the ministry of Jesus in His people. 

Ep. 1:18-19 I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe.

Because of the great work of Jesus, His people will minister in great power, and receive eternal blessings. 

This is revival.